The Alpha's Mate (Unedited)

Part 39

Another part for any of those loyal readers out there! :)

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We ran for days; sometimes falling into wolf form and sometimes just jogging as humans and sometimes a combination of the two. Although my shoes had long worn off, my clothes were still thankfully intact, as were Luna's. I don't think either of us was keen on the idea of confronting Amy naked.

On the fourth day, I caught a sickly sweet scent and my brain automatically screamed 'Amy!' as my inbuilt wolf senses were alerted. I stopped Luna, who looked decidedly confused until I encouraged her to take a deep whiff. She inhaled and then stiffened. She shot me a stare which was a mixture of curiosity and wonder.

"You really have become an Alpha female - that scent was difficult for even a trained Beta to detect" she said slowly and I shrugged casually, secretly pleased with the compliment though I don't know why. We prowled through the woods until we caught scent of another pack. Oh no.

"We can't confront Amy with her pack - we'll be eaten alive. Literally" I said with a hint of apprehension. Luna looked thoughtful and then smiled.

"We'll just walk around for a bit. Amy should pick up our scent and come out alone. She acts on impulse and won't think to bring anyone out with her"

Slightly sceptical but seeing no other option, I went along with Luna's plan. We sauntered in a twisting route through the wood, playing on the border of the other pack's territory. After a few hours, we rested on a fallen tree and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Several more hours passed until eventually, my ears pricked at the sound of footsteps. Luna leapt up a second later and we tensed, our stances defensive. I spotted a flash of bright pink in the distance, stark against the brown-and-green woodland we had grown accustomed too.

Amy, today wearing a tight, bright pink top, a short denim skirt and gleaming white cowboy boots strutted into the clearing. My eyes narrowed in time with Luna's.

"Luna" she greeted tersely "Keira" pleasantries gone, she spat out my name. I nodded by way of reply.

"Amy. Punctual, as usual."

"Punctual? This was planned?"

Before Amy could think of running, Luna had moved - so fast she was blurred - behind Amy to stop her from running. Reliable as always.

"Yep" I said smugly. I advanced and I swear I saw Amy actually flinch. Wow, my appearance really must have deteriorated on my journey; the old Amy wouldn't have been fazed by me, even if I held a sword to her throat while whispering to a schizophrenic friend. Hiding my shock, I forced my lips upwards in my smile. I needed to portray myself as powerful and unbothered by her appearance - the opposite of how I currently felt.

"I didn't like being pushed out a window..." I began in a steady, even tone and Amy appeared to gulp visibly.

"Yeah - about that...I didn't mean to...it was an accident..."

"Save it" I snapped "I wasn't born yesterday"

I stalked closer until I could practically see the cracks in her foundation. Her lips had formed a surprised 'O'.

"Um, Keira, I don't know what happened to you but you're really starting to freak me out..." Amy said in a quiet voice. I glanced at Luna, who's face flickered for a split second with nervous surprise before morphing into unwavering resolve. I inhaled. Strong, Keira, you are strong.

"I think you owe me and my friend an apology" I said coolly. Amy snorted.

"Why?!" she said scornfully.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

"Since you tried to steal my mate and mess with both mine and Luna's heads. And that's only two reasons. There are many, many more" I replied.

In. Out.

"I don't think so" Amy smirked "Shoulda been a bit nicer to him to start with. Maybe then he wouldn't have been tempted to stray!"

In. Out.

"He didn't stray! You influenced him with wo-"

"Plus it's not my fault your silly little Beta female's mate was psychotic" she added, sniggering.

I glimpsed at Luna's agonized expression. Her pain echoed in my own head.

I breathed. In. Out.

And lunged - yes, it was my turn to fly off the handle - at Amy's bare, unprotected throat.